The 39-year-old is responsible for almost 50 students from preschool to Grade 5, and a staff of four teachers, including herself.

Lorraine Taillefer, the principal of Ecole Francophone de Hay River, and her children Alexis, 8, and Carolyn, 6. - Paul Bickford/NNSL photo

News/North: How important is a French-language school to the francophone community in Hay River?

Lorraine Taillefer: Last year, one of our students mentioned that 'I'm part of the big French family.' They didn't really see it as a school. They really see it as a family, a community, a group of people together. And we really try to promote that within the students. You're part of a big family of francophones.

N/N: Is this school important culturally?

LT: Maybe I could switch hats and speak as a mother. I have two children and, as my oldest was growing up, for me it was really important for my child to retain her French heritage and her French language because I'm obviously very French. I'm of French descent. My husband is English speaking. We're living in a majority anglophone, English-speaking community. It was important for me to have my culture kept alive.

There was a small group of parents who decided that, yes, we do want that for our children and pursued that ... So we gathered the French people in town and went for it, and started a very small program. There were six or eight students involved then, and then we never looked back. And from there it just grew and grew.

This is my second year here, but my daughter did start kindergarten in the program and she has retained the French. Now my youngest is in the program in Grade 1, and they both speak French and they both have their culture. For them to be able to go back to Quebec and converse with their grandparents, their family and with me as a francophone, that means a lot as a mother.

N/N: What kind of feedback do you get from parents?

LT: We've had parents who've travelled elsewhere and they don't often hear their child speaking French outside the school. So they travel somewhere and it happens that there's a French-speaking person there and they hear their child speaking French and are in awe of what their child can do and what their child is able to accomplish. We have assemblies in the school where we celebrate what we do at school and the parents see that and witness what their children are capable of. It's heartwarming for them. We have wonderful support from the parents. They're behind us.

N/N: Has the Metis culture in Hay River helped the school become established?

LT: For our student population, it's helping in the sense that there are a lot of Metis people here, so there are a lot of people with French heritage.

So we are getting those students in. Unfortunately, not as many as we would like. It's good that they have that option.

N/N: Do the students forget sometimes to speak French and break into English?

LT: Once in a while. Especially when they go outside and play on the playground, sometimes they forget ... Every year they get stronger and more confident with the language. It's just beautiful to see it. When they start kindergarten, it's not as natural to begin with. It's more difficult.

N/N: Has the number of students increased this year over last?

LT: It is increasing a lot faster than we had anticipated. The program is really growing. We now have six or seven students on a waiting list.

N/N: What grades does the school accommodate?

LT: This year, the lead class is in Grade 5. Next year it will be Grade 6.

N/N: As that lead class progresses through the system, will the school grow along? By the time that class reaches Grade 12, how many students will the school have?

LT: It's hard to say because this year we had anticipated about 43 to 44 students, and we're beyond that and we have a waiting list. We're anticipating a brand-new building within the next two years, and we're hoping that with that we'll have more visibility and people will endorse the program and see French education and go with it. It's hard to say, but right now it's growing. It's growing fast and things are going well.

N/N: Are all the students from francophone families or are they also from non-francophone families?

LT: The majority of our students are from French heritage. However, because this is the only French program offered in Hay River, we wanted to leave it open because there are other people out there who would like their children to have access to French education. So we opened the doors to about 20 per cent of our population who is not of French heritage.

N/N: What do you see as the future of this school?

LT: For us to get this building, to get our own school was a big stepping stone. It's wonderful. Last year, we shared. We had two classrooms within an English school, and it was difficult because we didn't have our own space. We didn't have our own identity ... For the future, I know this program is strong and established.

N/N: Where are you from?

LT: I'm very French. I grew up in a farming community in Quebec and did all my studies in Quebec. I have a degree in recreation and leisure and a bachelor of education. I never spoke English until I was an adult and at that point decided to learn English. So I went to Winnipeg for a year. I didn't learn much English. There are lots of French-speaking people in Winnipeg, I realized. Then I went to Pine Point in 1986 and learned English there.

N/N: Do you get personal satisfaction from being principal of a francophone school in Canada's North?

LT: Definitely. For me, I really look at it through my children's eyes. That's my big achievement right now. I'm French, I'm from Quebec, I will never lose it. It will always be part of me. It's part of my culture.

However, what are my children? They were born in the North. Their dad is English speaking from the West. I'm from the East and French-speaking. So where do they fit into that? What's their heritage? Of course, it's a mixture of everything and French is a part of that. For me to be able to keep that in them, that's what's satisfying as a mother.